Lucy Bernholz, writing on Philanthropy 2173, wonders why it’s still so difficult to track exactly how much people are contributing — and to what organizations — after a disaster.

Ms. Bernholz cites a Chronicle article that tallies giving to some of the larger humanitarian groups responding to the crisis in Myanmar. But, says Ms. Bernholz, “We still have no running ticker of online gifts through the myriad online giving sites – globalgiving, NetworkforGood, Google’s Myanmar cyclone site, or any of the sites buying adwords placements for Myanmar disaster relief.”

She continues: “Even if we don’t get a “ticker” of these gifts, isn’t it ironic that the best info we have comes from the Chronicle making phone calls to the big nonprofits and we still don’t have any faster, easier, reliable sense of what giving is going where? We can give instantly, but we still can’t track that giving.”

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation should be applauded for selecting Jeffrey S. Raikes as its new head, says Joel J. Orosz in an interview on the Etolutionist blog.

Unlike so many foundation appointees, Mr. Raikes actually has first-hand experience in philanthropy, says Mr. Orosz, a professor at Grand Valley State University.

Sure, Mr. Raikes was a safe choice in the sense that he’s a former Microsoft executive. But Mr. Raikes has also chaired a United Way campaign, participated in a homelessness census, and run a family foundation, Mr. Orosz notes.

“Let’s hope that this move by Gates, the biggest and perhaps the most influential of the world’s foundations, ushers in an era when prior experience in the hard work of giving is considered at least as important an attribute when choosing foundation CEOs as being a university president or a corporate titan,” says Mr. Orosz.

Sean...

Is “venture philanthropy” really just a “high-end shell game”?

So wonders Kelly Kleiman, on her blog The Nonprofiteer, in response to a comment on the 501cFiles.

Back in February, Tom Durso, who writes the 501cFiles, posted a critical analysis of a New York Times article lauding venture philanthropy. On Tuesday, somebody posted a comment to his blog raising the idea that start-up businesses use nonprofit organizations to buy credibility for their companies.

“What reporters should be questioning about venture philanthropy is whether it’s one of the last few tax write-offs or tax advantageous schemes – or ways to help buddies get rid of dogs or other unwanted investments,” says the blog writer.

He lays out this scenario: A start-up company needs an investment from a “known brand” to get started. So the company’s primary backer — a venture capitalist — might donate a few...

The Wall Street Journal’s Wealth Report has an interview with Michael Edwards, director of society and civil governance with the Ford Foundation, on his new book, Just Another Emperor: The Myths and Realities of Philanthrocapitalism.

Mr. Edwards is critical of the application of business principles to philanthropy, saying that there’s no evidence that it leads to deeper, longer-lasting solutions to social problems.

In the interview, Robert Frank, of the Wealth Report, asks, “So how should today’s philanthrocapitalists change what they’re doing?”

Mr. Edwards responds: “Three things. First: Stop, look, listen and learn. Second: Be very clear about where the market and technology can bring social results. And third: Work with others, rather than doing everything yourself.”

Readers of Mr. Frank’s post offer numerous criticisms of Mr. Edwards’ argument. His statement that the...

In appealing to help for victims of the cyclone in Myanmar, First Lady Laura Bush should have known better than to “mindlessly repeat the toothless U.S. policy positions on a government we disapprove of,” writes Richard Walden on the Huffington Post.

Mr. Walden, president of Operation USA, in Culver City, Calif., says that most aid workers have strong views about the governments in countries where they work.

“But when disaster strikes, a bad or ineffective local government is an obstacle to be danced around not bludgeoned to death thus guaranteeing it will not allow the entry of urgent humanitarian aid for its people,” he says.

“Laura Bush read the administration’s long-standing talking points on Myanmar while simultaneously demanding that its government accept a team of US disaster officials to make an independent assessment of its needs,” he says. “That the International Red...

Kelly Kleiman, a laywer and journalist who blogs as The Nonprofiteer, urges her nonprofit clients to spend more time wooing individual donors than writing grant proposals. A new report on the downsides of the evaluation craze among grant makers, by ProjectStreamline.org, underscores why.

“The report’s most provocative observation is that grantors’ evaluation demands of grantees are the philanthropic equivalent of outsourcing — that is, securing services from underpaid and unrepresented workers,” writes Ms. Kleiman.

Grant makers are better positioned than grantees to evaluate success, both because they have the money to do so and because they’ve (presumably) seen more of it. Involve grantees in discussions about evaluation, says Ms. Kleiman, but don’t make them assume the entire burden of determining success.

Other perils of the grant maker-grantee relationship?

Charities...

While there are plenty of challenges facing aid workers in Burma, it is possible for humanitarian groups to operate there, writes Joel R. Charny, vice president for for policy with Refugees International, in Washington.

After his recent trip to Burma, Mr. Charny says, “ I concluded that donor governments were missing opportunities to support independent humanitarian work inside the country.”

Writing on the AlertNet blog, Mr. Charny lists some of the obstacles facing charity workers. The military government is deeply suspicious of the motivations of U.N. and nonprofit employees. They impose travel restrictions and delay granting visas.

Providing aid to Burmese refugees in Thailand is also difficult, says Mr. Charny. The Thai government refuses to allow Burmese refugees to leave camps and work legally.

Despite those obstacles, humanitarian work is possible and the “scope” of...

Is making loans through the Web site Kivab4b really the best way to fight poverty overseas? Kelly Kleiman, of The Nonprofiteer doesn’t think so.

Kivab4b is a project sponsored by Advanta, the credit-card company, and Kiva, the charity that enables people to make loans to small business owners abroad. Through the new site, business owners in the United States can use their Advanta cards to make loans. The company matches users’ contributions.

But Ms. Kleiman, a lawyer and freelance journalist, doesn’t think this is the most effective way to help poor people overseas. Telling Americans they can solve poverty simply through loans — without the help of charitable contributions — isn’t right, she says.

She also takes issue with the Web site’s featured beneficiary, a Haitian woman who has started a small cosmetics company. Ms. Kleiman wonders whether helping people start businesses...

How can charities cultivate young leaders?

The Future Leaders in Philanthropy blog describes how speakers at a recent roundtable discussion answered that question.

Patrick A. Corvington of the Annie E. Casey Foundation described a recent survey his foundation and other organizations conducted showing that 75 percent of young people love their work at charities. They’re willing to accept slightly lower salaries and long hours, but they’re not willing to sacrifice everything, he said.

“We don’t talk enough about how we treat talent in the sector,” he said. That “combination of finance and treatment can be fatal.”

One challenge the survey identified is that young people are pigeonholed — as marketers, fund raisers, or program people — and aren’t given a chance to learn general skills.

Mr. Corvington and other speakers, including Cheryl Dorsey, of Echoing Green — a group that ...

How can grant makers ensure that minority-led charities have a fair shot at receiving money?

The Foundation Center is trying to help charities that serve Hispanic people by offering services in Spanish, notes Kelly Kleiman, author of The Nonprofiteer blog.

Ms. Kleiman applauds the Foundation Center’s efforts, but she also suggests another step the organization should be taking.

“Wouldn’t it be more helpful to Latino agencies to have the Foundation Center offer Spanish-language classes to monolingual program officers, who often overlook things taking place in communities whose newspapers they can’t read?” she asks.

What do you think? What more can be done to expand the amount of foundation money that flows to groups that serve Hispanic people and other minorities?